Alessandro
Sir Alessandro of Baywood is an knight-errant and one of the co-founders of the Iron Order. Alessandro served as a constable of the town of Baywood, Khanduras for many years prior to the Emergence of Evil. Together alongside co-founder Hildur, the duo traveled across the broken kingdom of Khanduras after the Reign of Anguish had ended to create a paramilitary organization in an attempt to reform control and authority by providing mercenary service. History Born and raised in Baywood, Khanduras, much is unknown about Alessandro's upbringing. What is known is that he squired for many warriors in his youth and eventually joined Knighthood sometime during King Leoric's reign. He married Matilda, a nobleman's daughter, and had two children with her. A few years later he began an affair with a local towns woman named Hannah. The Letter of Recollection Shortly before the Darkening of Tristam, Alessandro was summoned to war by the Mad King Leoric. He fought and participated in several skirmishes through out Westmarch before he was captured as a prisoner of war. While imprisoned he was allowed to mail his wife Matilda about his incarceration. Alessandro sent and received weekly letters from Matilida on the condition that he provide his captors with information about the kingdom of Khanduras as well as good behavior. After nearly a year of imprisonment he received a final letter from Matilda, in it describing the harsh and ruined state of Khanduras caused by the Reign of Anguish. Matilda's last letter made it clear that she and their children would leave and Brywood and flee east to Aranoch. Alessandro was released from prison and coerced to leave Westmarch several days after the Worldstone's Destruction, a cataclysmic event that shook all of Sanctuary. Upon returning to Khanduras and witnessing the destruction caused by the Reign of Anguish, Alessandro transformed into stricken warrior, with added complexity to his demeanor and personality. In 1265, he journeyed to the remote mountains of Khanduras in an attempt to find his wife and children but crossed paths with Hildur, a traveling soldier-of-fortune from the north. Hildur, having befriended Alessandro in a short amount of time, promised to help him find his family in return for helping him start a mercenary group in the ruined kingdom of Khanduras. During the several months of searching the Aranoch and Khanduras for his wife - as well as the abandoned and isolated town that was once Brywood - Alessandro and Hildur joined together as a mercenary duo to offer their services to small towns and villages along the way. Among their accomplishments together was helping to establish and secure multiple safe roads between the sister nations of Khanduras and Aranoch. Their efforts attracted the reputation and recognition that both of them desired; Hildur saw fit to use their reputation to start a large scale mercenary group that he had long desired and Alessandro wished for his recognition to be noticed by his family so that Matilda would reach out and make contact, but the latter failed to do so. The Iron Order Alessandro and Hildur garnished much respect from the denizens that traveled between Aranoch and Khanduras; their efforts were later recognized by the city officials of Lut Gholien, the largest trading city in the western continent, that allowed trading caravans to safely transport goods and services. Aside from food and crops to feed the denizens of Khanduras, the need for iron and forgery was at an all time high in Khanduras as traders everywhere began shipping surplus of resources. In the months following, several mercenaries who traveled to Khanduras from all corners of the Western Kingdoms sought to collaborate with Alessandro and Hildur. Early 1266 saw the beginning of the Iron Order, a mercenary paramilitary group focused on zealous commitment to iron armor and weaponry, which remained in high demand for a long duration. Alessandro initially took on a leadership role that would attract many followers due to his seasoned experienced against the demonic hordes. However, Alessandro's true desire was to gain enough recognition through the heroics of his organization so that his family, if still alive, would find or contact him. Nevertheless, he never stopped searching for them. Character and Appearance An uneasy man with no patience to listen, Alessandro is a blunt and stubborn man who does not care what others think. He is a seasoned warrior, a veteran of over a dozen battles, and precise in his movements. He is almost always seen garbed in some form of iron or armor. A notable aspect of Alessandro is his speech disorder that causes him to stutter. He is intolerable when he is intoxicated as he has shown numerous times to unleash violent tantrums even against his peers, having once killed a man for accidentally spilling ale into his helmet. Many of the Iron Order's internal problems are often blamed on him as his attempts at leadership have often lowered morale among his minions.